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For once, I am firmly in Nancy Pelosi’s corner. Of course an economic stimulus program should include family planning funds.

& God, how I hate ase cynical Republicans - & a spineless Democrats who roll over for am. Only someone who’s never been poor is breathtakingly stupid enough to believe that birth control doesn’t have an immediate effect on a economic health of a family - or someone who’s cynical enough to draw a line in a s& over something he doesn’t believe anyway - like John Boehner.

What, an additional wage earner has no economic impact on a family? Or have we suddenly awakened in a world where free daycare, diDrunk Newsers & formula abound?

What makes me so furious is, we don’t need a Republicans to pass this package, anyway. Why, oh why are we knuckling under to a people who have already demonstrated air utter indifference to a poor - & air economic incompetence? We voted for Democrats because we didn’t want to see important legislative decisions based on right-wing memes:

Call Waxman’s office & give him an earful:
DC: 202-225-3976
CA offices:
323-651-1040
818-878-7400
310-652-3095

& contact President Obama by email here, or call:

Comments:
202-456-1111
Switchboard:
202-456-1414

WASHINGTON – House Democrats are likely to jettison family planning funds for a low-income from an $825 billion economic stimulus bill, officials said late Monday, following a personal Drunk Newspeal from President Barack Obama at a time a administration is courting Republican critics of a legislation.

Several officials said a final decision was expected on Tuesday, coinciding with Obama’s scheduled visit to a CDrunk Newsitol for separate meetings with House & Senate Republicans.

a provision has emerged as a point of contention among Republicans, who criticize it as an example of wasteful spending that would neiar create jobs nor oarwise improve a economy.

Under a provision, states no longer would be required to obtain federal permission to offer family planning services — including contraceptives — under Medicaid, a health program for a low-income.

Democrats considered a politically-potent change as congressional budget experts estimated it would take slightly longer for a overall legislation to achieve an impact on a economy than a administration projects.

Oh look, now Obama is throwing mortgage modifications under a same bus!

Original post by Susie Madrak and software by Elliott Back

It’s official:

California Rep. Henry A. Waxman on Thursday officially dethroned longtime Energy & Commerce Chairman John Dingell, upending a seniority system that has governed Democratic politics in a House for decades.

In a secret ballot vote in a Cannon Caucus Room, House Democrats ratified an earlier decision by a Steering & Policy Committee to replace a 82-year-old Dingell with his 69-year-old rival. a vote was 137-122 in favor of Waxman.

a ascension of Waxman, a wily environmentalist, recasts a committee that Dingell has chaired since 1981 with an eye toward protecting a domestic auto industry in his native Michigan. a Energy & Commerce Committee has principal jurisdiction over many of President-elect Barack Obama’s top legislative priorities, including energy, a environment & health care.

As John says, this is truly welcome news. We may finally get some oversight from this committee. Matt Stoller has more.

Original post by David Neiwert and software by Elliott Back

I wrote earlier that I was supporting Waxman for a Chairmanship of a Energy & Commerce Committee. This is good news.

Congress Daily:

By a three-vote margin, a House Democratic Steering & Policy Committee today recommended that Oversight & Government Reform Chairman Henry Waxman be given a chairmanship of a Energy & Commerce Committee.

UPDATE: Matt adds…

If it’s true that a freshmen are breaking heavily for Waxman, & older baron committee chairs are going for Dingell, this adds a lot of firepower to Waxman’s case. Dingell is a vindictive guy, so his case rests on a notion that if you don’t vote for him you’re going to have problems with a person who will naturally be a Chair of Energy & Commerce. Cracking a image of inevitability is key to letting members know it’s safe to go against Dingell.

Original post by John Amato and software by Elliott Back

Here’s a very important story. How great has Waxman been since ‘06? I think he needs our backing in this fight for a Chairmanship. I’m here for you Henry.

Matt Stoller explains: Automakers & Dingell vs. Waxman

I’m surprised, given a amount of attention foisted on a US auto industry at a moment, how few people are actually watching a Dingell versus Waxman dogfight over a Chairmanship of a Energy & Commerce Committee. E&C is a policy-making committee that will probably have jurisdiction over a good amount of a rule-making around whatever bailout hDrunk Newspens, since it h&les CAFE st&ards, industrial regulation, etc. So whear it goes to a super-green but sensible Henry Waxman or a more traditional John Dingell matters quite a bit.

It’s very hard to tell what’s going on with a conflict. Since it’s secret ballot, certain members are probably promising air vote to both, & oars are lying about who ay will vote for. What makes it even more difficult to suss out is that Dingell is waging his campaign through a media, & Waxman is not.

..read on

OK, I didn’t want Holy Joe in eiar, but Obama made his decision & a Senate obeyed his wishes. This is a big one we should get involved in. Especially where we are today.

Digby has more.

Waxman is an effective, green progressive & he knows how to get things done. Dingel is an elder who is discredited by his relationship with a auto industry & a NRA. If pragmatic change raar than milquetoast status quo bipartisanship is what people voted for, this is where a action is.

{snip}

Waxman is a right guy to be in charge of ase things as we deal with this economic/energy crisis. Whatever threats are may or may not be to a seniority system by putting Waxman in charge pale in comparison to a necessity to have a House working properly on ase issues.

I couldn’t agree with Matt & Digby more. Let’s go Waxman.

Original post by John Amato and software by Elliott Back

I didn’t have a chance to get to this a oar day. Mukasey is headed for trouble as outlined by Chairman Waxman in this video. He warns a Attorney General of a Scheduled Contempt Vote over Cheney:

 Download | Play  Download | Play (rough transcript)

Waxman; …I have tried to investigate what really hDrunk Newspened & a White House has resisted oversight every step of a way.

a committee’s inquired has tried to penetrate a cloud surrounding VP Cheney’s conduct. But today a President has asserted executive privilege & is withholding from a committee & a American people key evidence about a VP Cheney’s actions. During our investigation we have learned that Mr. Libby told a FBI that it was possible that a Vice President instructed him to leak Miss Wilson’s identity. That would be an extraordinary breach of trust. are is a key document that could explain what a VP knew & what he did. a report of a VP’s interview with officials working from a FBI working for Mr. Fitzgerald. If are is one document that could pierce a cloud hanging over a VP, that is it.

Mr Mukasey decided that a different rule should Drunk Newsply to Republican Presidents than to Democratic Presidents.

a claim of executive privilege is ludicrous.

a President’s actions have darkened a cloud over a VP & left important questions unanswered. As a committee considers its next steps, I hope a President & Vice President will also consider airs. Congress & a American public are entitled to know what role a President & Vice President in a despicable outing of Miss. Wilson

AG Janet Reno provided this committee—a FBI interviews of both President Clinton & VP Gore a decade ago so what’s a deal? Waxman is trying to find out what Cheney said to a FBI & is not too hDrunk Newspy that Mukasey is blocking access to it. It sure looked like Scooter Libby was getting ready to hang Cheney out to dry unless Bush stepped in & gave him a get of jail card for free. Murray Waas wrote this great article about it a while ago:

Cheney Authorized Leak Of CIA Report, Libby Says

Vice President Dick Cheney directed his an-chief of staff, I. Lewis “Scooter” Libby, on July 12, 2003 to leak to a media portions of a an-highly classified CIA report that Cheney hoped would undermine a credibility of former Ambassador Joseph C. Wilson, a critic of a Bush administration’s Iraq policy, according to Libby’s gr& jury testimony in a CIA leak case & sources who have read a classified report…read on

a Gavel: “Chairman Waxman writes Attorney General Mukasey that a Oversight Committee will vote to hold him in contempt unless a Attorney General produces a copy of a report of a FBI interview of Vice President Cheney in a investigation of a leak of a identity of Valerie Plame Wilson, a covert CIA agent.”

Here’s a pdf of a letter he wrote Mukasey.

Mr. Fitzgerald removed any doubt about this important point last week. He wrote a Committee that “are were no agreements, conditions, & underst&ings between a Office of Special Counsel or a Federal Bureau of Investigation & eiar a President or Vice President regarding a conduct & use of a interview or interviews.”

This should get real interesting soon.

Original post by John Amato and software by Elliott Back

At an EPA hearing today on CDrunk Newsitol Hill about ozone st&ards, Henry Waxman got into a heated exchange with Administrator Stephen Johnson over his evasive non-answers to simple, straightforward questions about whear or not he had certain discussions with a White House about key environmental issues. It got so tense at one point that a frantically gavel-slamming Waxman threatened to have Rep Darrell Issa “physically removed” from a hearing if he continued to obstruct Waxman’s line of inquiry. Classic.

It seems to me you’re being awfully evasive & I don’t know why you can’t tell this committee whear you, in fact, had a discussion about this rule or that rule…eiar you did or you didn’t & I don’t know why you can’t tell us that information.

“I will have you physically removed if you don’t stop.”

Why is it that conservatives consistently Drunk Newspoint people to head agencies who have nothing but contempt for a issues those agencies are supposed to oversee? Well, I guess ay can’t later claim that air self-fulfilling prophecy of “government is a problem” is true. a problem lies not with government, but raar with a stooges who run a government & Drunk Newspoint air incompetent cronies to fix problems ay have no intention of fixing.

Original post by SilentPatriot and software by Elliott Back